Material and Methods
This study included 105 pediatric patients between the ages of 0-18
years, who were diagnosed with COVID-19 in Dicle University, Faculty of
Medicine, Department of Pediatric which is the main center for
management of pediatric Covid-19 patients in southeastern Turkey,
between April 2020 and June 2020. The diagnosis of COVID-19 was made by
the method of real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction
(RT-PCR) in samples obtained with nasopharyngeal swab. During the
diagnosis, BUN, creatinine, Alanine amino transferase (ALT), Aspartate
amino transferase (AST), Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), serum
electrolytes, Prothrombin time (PT), Activated partial thromboplastin
time (aPTT), International normalized ratio (INR), C-reactive protein
(CRP), procalcitonin, troponin I, CK-MB and D-Dimer were studied in all
patients. Posterior-anterior (PA) chest radiography was performed in
every patient included in the study and in cases of pathological
findings on radiography or clinically severe cases. The data that
include patient demographics, laboratory and clinical results, and the
previous treatments of the patients were retrospectively taken from
patient files and computer-based patient records.
The severity of the disease was classified as asymptomatic, mild,
moderate, severe, and critical according to the clinical characteristic,
laboratory results, and chest radiography findings (18).
- Asymptomatic: Cases with a positive RT-PCR test without any
clinical and radiological findings
- Mild: Cases with upper respiratory tract infection symptoms
such as fever, fatigue, myalgia, cough, sore throat, nasal flow with
normal espiratory system examination
- Moderate: Cases with pneumonia with complaints of fever and
cough but without the symptoms of dyspnea and hypoxemia or cases with
findings of COVID-19 on chest CT scan without any symptoms
- Severe: Cases with fever and cough in the early period who
develop dyspnea and central cyanosis within a week (arterial oxygen
saturation of <92%)
- Critical: Cases who develop acute respiratory distress or
respiratory failure rapidly, and who tend to develop shock,
encephalopathy, myocardial affection, coagulation dysfunction, and
acute kidney injury
The patients were divided into three age groups and the data were
compared. These groups were as follows: Group 1, patients aged 0 to 1
year (0-12 months); Group 2, patients aged 1 to 10 years (13-120
months); Group 3, patients aged 10 to 18 years (130-216 months).
Patients over 18 years of age and suspected of having COVID-19 with
clinical, laboratory, and radiological findings, but with negative
RT-PCR test results were excluded from the study.
The approval was taken from the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health
and the Ethics Committee of Dicle University, Faculty of Medicine.